Last week, the US Consulate in Saigon organized an Attorney Open House, for the benefit of American immigration lawyers working in Southeast Asia. The Consulate invited Robert Mullins to attend because of the very high volume of cases that RMI has at the Consulate.
The tour began with a walk through the various sections of the Consulate. After that, the group moved to the conference room of the American Center at Diamond Plaza, and heard talks by the Chiefs of the Immigrant Visa Section, the American Citizens Services, and the Non-Immigrant Visa Section.
Today’s show will report on information provided by the Immigrant Visa Chief. Future shows will report on the Non-Immigrant Visa section and American Citizen Services.
IMMIGRANT VISAS
· The Consulate in Saigon processes about 22,000 immigrant visas per year, putting them in 5th place among all US Consulates in the world.
· There are 8 consular officers in the Immigrant Visa section, each one handling about 15 cases per day.
· Cases of US citizens sponsoring their parents are showing some increase, while Fiancée cases are showing some decrease.
· The Consulate will expedite interviews for medical emergencies, cases of re-affirmed petitions, and other humanitarian needs. This means that the Consulate will arrange to hold the visa interview as soon as the petition becomes current. Visas cannot be issued before the petition is current.
· Appointment for Petitioner in Vietnam who wants to talk with Consul: If the case if being processed and the CG does not need anything else from the petitioner, the CG will usually not give an appointment. In other words, if the petitioner is just trying to find out why it is taking so long to get a decision, that is not enough reason for an appointment. When we request an appointment, the CG will check the file to make sure they did not forget about it.
· I-864 Affidavit of Support: The Immigrant Visa Chief said that some I-864’s are rejected because they are not properly signed, or because someone signed instead of the petitioner.
If there is a co-sponsor or joint-sponsor, the Consulate needs an explanation or documents to show the relationship between the sponsor and the co-sponsor or joint sponsor.
To meet the minimum income requirement for sponsors, the Consulate does not accept assets in place of income.
· New policy: For spouse cases, the American citizen sponsor CAN enter the Consulate and wait during the interview, in case the interview officer wants to talk with him.
· CSPA: If the visa application fees are already paid to NVC for a CSPA applicant, the CG will not charge again for the same thing. So, there is no “CSPA Fee”.
If the fee has not been paid to NVC, the Consulate is required to collect the fee before making a decision about CSPA processing. Sometimes the family does not pay the fee for older children because they don’t know that the children will be eligible for CSPA processing.
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Q.1. My wife and children have interview appointments on different days. How can they arrange to have the interviews at the same time?
A.1. They can contact the Consulate to reschedule the interviews. If that is not possible, they can all go to the Consulate for the interview at the same time. The Consulate will allow all of them to be interviewed together.
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Q.2. I just graduated from college and just started working. Will the Consulate require a co-sponsor for my fiancee’s affidavit of support?
A.2. For fiancée cases, the Consulate usually does not require a co-sponsor if it is likely that the lady will be employable when she comes to the US. However, if the petitioner is permanently disabled and has insufficient income, it is likely that the case will be denied with or without a co-sponsor.
ROBERT MULLINS INTERNATIONAL www.rmiodp.com
Immigration Support Services-Tham Van Di Tru
9070 Bolsa Avenue, Westminster CA 92683 (714) 890-9933
779 Story Road, Ste. 70, San Jose, CA 95122 (408) 294-3888
6930 65th St. Ste. #105, Sacramento CA 95823 (916) 393-3388
Cty Rang Mi: 47 Phung Khac Khoan, Q1, HCM (848) 3914-7638
The tour began with a walk through the various sections of the Consulate. After that, the group moved to the conference room of the American Center at Diamond Plaza, and heard talks by the Chiefs of the Immigrant Visa Section, the American Citizens Services, and the Non-Immigrant Visa Section.
Today’s show will report on information provided by the Immigrant Visa Chief. Future shows will report on the Non-Immigrant Visa section and American Citizen Services.
IMMIGRANT VISAS
· The Consulate in Saigon processes about 22,000 immigrant visas per year, putting them in 5th place among all US Consulates in the world.
· There are 8 consular officers in the Immigrant Visa section, each one handling about 15 cases per day.
· Cases of US citizens sponsoring their parents are showing some increase, while Fiancée cases are showing some decrease.
· The Consulate will expedite interviews for medical emergencies, cases of re-affirmed petitions, and other humanitarian needs. This means that the Consulate will arrange to hold the visa interview as soon as the petition becomes current. Visas cannot be issued before the petition is current.
· Appointment for Petitioner in Vietnam who wants to talk with Consul: If the case if being processed and the CG does not need anything else from the petitioner, the CG will usually not give an appointment. In other words, if the petitioner is just trying to find out why it is taking so long to get a decision, that is not enough reason for an appointment. When we request an appointment, the CG will check the file to make sure they did not forget about it.
· I-864 Affidavit of Support: The Immigrant Visa Chief said that some I-864’s are rejected because they are not properly signed, or because someone signed instead of the petitioner.
If there is a co-sponsor or joint-sponsor, the Consulate needs an explanation or documents to show the relationship between the sponsor and the co-sponsor or joint sponsor.
To meet the minimum income requirement for sponsors, the Consulate does not accept assets in place of income.
· New policy: For spouse cases, the American citizen sponsor CAN enter the Consulate and wait during the interview, in case the interview officer wants to talk with him.
· CSPA: If the visa application fees are already paid to NVC for a CSPA applicant, the CG will not charge again for the same thing. So, there is no “CSPA Fee”.
If the fee has not been paid to NVC, the Consulate is required to collect the fee before making a decision about CSPA processing. Sometimes the family does not pay the fee for older children because they don’t know that the children will be eligible for CSPA processing.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Q.1. My wife and children have interview appointments on different days. How can they arrange to have the interviews at the same time?
A.1. They can contact the Consulate to reschedule the interviews. If that is not possible, they can all go to the Consulate for the interview at the same time. The Consulate will allow all of them to be interviewed together.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Q.2. I just graduated from college and just started working. Will the Consulate require a co-sponsor for my fiancee’s affidavit of support?
A.2. For fiancée cases, the Consulate usually does not require a co-sponsor if it is likely that the lady will be employable when she comes to the US. However, if the petitioner is permanently disabled and has insufficient income, it is likely that the case will be denied with or without a co-sponsor.
ROBERT MULLINS INTERNATIONAL www.rmiodp.com
Immigration Support Services-Tham Van Di Tru
9070 Bolsa Avenue, Westminster CA 92683 (714) 890-9933
779 Story Road, Ste. 70, San Jose, CA 95122 (408) 294-3888
6930 65th St. Ste. #105, Sacramento CA 95823 (916) 393-3388
Cty Rang Mi: 47 Phung Khac Khoan, Q1, HCM (848) 3914-7638
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